Will Pakistan cooperate in disarming Hamas? |
ALONGSIDE reports of the proposed visit to the United States by Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, a particular question has begun to attract growing attention: Will Pakistan cooperate in disarming Hamas? Some international media outlets have published analysis-like reports suggesting that this moment constitutes a serious test for the Field Marshal. According to this view, if he agrees to such a demand, public backlash in Pakistan would be inevitable; if he refuses, he risks displeasing President Donald Trump. On the surface, the argument appears persuasive.
However, only a few days ago, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, categorically stated that Pakistan has no interest in disarming Hamas. Two additional aspects of his statement deserve close attention. First, he made it clear that Pakistan would never be part of any initiative whose objective goes beyond disarmament and seeks to eliminate Hamas’s resistance capability altogether. Second, he articulated a principled position: Pakistan could consider participating in a legitimate peacekeeping force, but the disarmament of Hamas or the dismantling of its resistance capacity does not fall within the mandate of such a force. In this entire debate, it is also essential to take into account the position of Hamas itself, which remains the principal party to the conflict.
At the time of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, Hamas made its stance unambiguously clear. It stated that it would not lay down its arms before any external power; however, it could consider doing so........